91 
July  24,  1S02.  JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
EZ 
HE  BEE-KEEPER. 
.  i .  i . , .  i .  i .  i .  i .  i  - 1 . , .  i .  i . 
.  1  -  T  -  I  •  i  ■  l  •  I  -  I  -  l  TP 
& 
Extracted  Honey. 
It  is  now  generally  admitted  that  a.  colony  will  produce  twice 
as  much  extracted  as  comb  honey,  and  when  it  is  considered  that 
the  former,  if  fully  ripe  when  removed  from  the  hive  will  keep 
any  length  of  time,  and  that  sections  are  apt  to  crystallise  as  the 
cold  weather  advances,  and  consequently  become  almost  unsale¬ 
able,  the  advantages  of  producing  run  honey  will  be  apparent. 
To  visit  a  successful  bee  farm  at  the  time  of  deprivation  where 
extracted  honey  is  worked  for,  and  see  the  tiers  of  supers  con¬ 
taining  this  natural  sweet  creates  an  imperishable  impression  on 
the  mind.  There  are  districts,  however,  where  sections  are  prac¬ 
tically  unknown,  and  the  bee-keeper  should  therefore  endeavour 
to  obtain  his  harvest  in  the  form  in  which  it  is  demanded  locally. 
Two  facts  must  not  be  lost  sight  of  in  producing  honey  in  any 
form  in  quantity;  first,  nothing  but  the  most  powerful  colonies 
will  give  satisfactory  results,  and  in  order  that  there  may  be  no 
misconception  as  to  what  a  powerful  colony  is,  it  is  as  well  to  inter¬ 
ject  here  that  the  constant  stream  of  traffic  entering  and  leaving 
the  hive  appears  to  block  the  entrance,  and  the  air  resembles 
nothing  so  much  as  a  hailstorm  in  progress.  Secondly,  that  the 
perfection  attained  in  queen  rearing  has  been  so  marked  that  the 
ordinary  single  brood  chamber  is  found  insufficient  to  accommo¬ 
date  the  increased  fertility  of  the  modern  queen.  Providing  a 
young,  and  consequently  prolific,  queen  heads  a  stock  there  will 
be  little  difficulty  experienced  as  regards  strength  if  properly 
managed,  and  the  following  plan  may  be  worked  :  — So  soon  as  the 
brood  chamber  is  completely  filled  with  bees  and  brood  and  the 
honey  flow  commencing,  which  is  evidenced  by  the  bees  falling 
heavily  on  the  alighting  board  with  distended  bodies,  and  the 
whitening  and  extending  of  the  cells  next  to  the  top  bar  of  the 
frames,  or  the  presence  of  thin  newly  gathered  nectar  in  the  hive, 
a  shallow  super  or  a  second  brood-chamber  should  be  placed  under¬ 
neath  to  enlarge  the  brood-nest,  and  after  first  placing  the  queen 
excluder  over  the  body  box  another  shallow  super  should  be  placed 
above.  The  one  below  will  immediately  be  taken  possession  of 
by  the  queen  for  ovipositing,  and  the  bees  thus  obtained  will  in 
the  height  of  the  season  rapidly  fill  the  combs  of  the  one  above 
with  honey,  which  may  be  removed  and  extracted  as  soon  as  com¬ 
pleted  and  returned  to  be  refilled,  or  further  shallow  supers  may 
be  given  and  left  on  the  hive  until  the  close  of  the  harvest. 
When  giving  honey  chambers  care  must  be  taken  to  prevent 
the  escape  of  heat  at  the  junctions  between  badly  fitting  supers. 
This  may  be  accomplished  by  inserting  lengths  of  folded  news¬ 
paper,  or  pasting  slips  of  paper  over  the  crevices.  If  there  is  any 
doubt  as  to  the  strength  of  any  colonies  they  should  be  worked 
on  the  doubling  plan.  Greater  harvests  are  secured  by  this  than 
by  any  other  method  of  management.  To  double,  all  that  is 
necessary  is  to  remove  the  inferior  queen,  if ,  any,  and  if  it  is 
found  desirable  to  preserve  her,  make  a  nucleus  on  the  old  stand 
and  place  the  hive  and  its  contents  bodily  upon  the  other,  making 
a  double  chamber,  which  by  the  hatching  above  and  below  will 
soon  teem  with  life,  and  this  enormous  population  will  fill  the 
upper  storey  with  honey,  which  should  be  extracted  as  often  as 
necessary,  or  if  in  possession  of  plenty  of  drawn  out  combs  (one  of 
the  apiarist’s  valuable  assets  when  working  for  extracted  honey) 
they  may  be  added  and  left  until  the  close  of  the  season.  The 
nucleus  should  consist  of  one  bar  of  brood  and  bees  and  two  empty 
ooriibs,  as  a  proportion  of  the  bees  from  the  doubled  portion  will 
return  to  the  old  stand  and  strengthen  it.  Colonies  thus  treated 
are  effectually  prevented  from  swarming,  and  the  union  of  the 
two>  stocks  enables  it  to  place  a  larger  force  of  honey  gatherers 
in  the  field  than  would  have  been  possible  if  left  in  their  former 
condition.  Although  this  method  involves  some  labour,  it  has 
greater  compensations,  and  the  plan  has  many  adherents.  The 
use  of  shallow  supers  for  extraction  is  preferable,  as  they  are  not 
only  handled  with  greater  facility,  are  less  liable  to  fracture  in 
the  exterior,  but  are  also  more  rapidly  sealed  by  the  bees,  and 
uncapped.  Where  deep  combs  are  used  throughout,  the  top  stories 
should,  after  extracting,  be  placed  below  the  brood  chamber  to 
give  the  queen  room  for  egg  laying,  as  the  cleaning  of  the  wet 
combs  acts  as  a  most  powerful  stimulant.  By  this  means  swarm¬ 
ing  is  checked  with  tolerable  certainty  by  obviating  its  greatest 
incentive,  namely,  completion  of  brood  nests.  There  is  no  loaf¬ 
ing,  the  energy  of  the  bees  being  directed  to  storing  surplus,  con¬ 
sequently  there  is  a  much  greater  yield. — E.  E.,  Sandbach. 
Kalanchoe  flammea  as  a  Bedding  Plant. 
As  the  world  grows  older  so  in  some  respects  it  improves,  and 
surely  if  we  can  hope  to  see  masses  of  this  superb  Crassulaceous 
plant  adorning  our  outdoor  beds  in  summer  (with  Primula 
obconica  as  an  edging !)  may  we  not  report  progress  ?  At  Kew 
it  has  been  given  a  trial,  and  the  plants  seem  perfectly  satisfied 
with  the  conditions  of  life  under  which  they  are  now  existing. 
Hardy  Fruit  Garden. 
MORELLO  CHERRIES. — The  large  amount  of  growth  which 
the  trees  have  made  necessitates  that  the  removal  of  superfluous 
growths,  especially  those  of  a  weakly  character,  shoots  unsuitably 
placed,  also-  strong,  succulent,  sappy  growths  which  have  started 
from  old  parts  of  the  wood,  should  be  dealt  with  gradually.  Where 
the  trees  have  hitherto  had  the  required  attention,  rubbing  out 
the  undesirable  shoots  early,  less  manipulation  in  this  respect  will 
be  demanded,  but  attention  must  be  given  to  selecting  the  best 
growths  for  laying  in.  This  is  necessary  alike  in  the  interest  of 
the  wood  as  well  as  the  fruit,  the  latter  requiring  abundance  of 
light  and  air  to  develop  size,  flavour,  and  colour,  while  the  same 
conditions  must  be  present  to  ripen  the  wood.  The  greatest 
proportion  of  wood  is  laid  in  at  full  length,  and  if  enough  can  be 
found  to  properly  furnish  the  whole  required,  this  will  be  found 
better  than  retaining  shortened  shoots  with  the  idea  of  forming 
spurs.  Trees  from  which  the  fruit  has  been  cleared  may  be 
frequently  syringed  in  order  to  destroy  or  keep  down  attacks  of 
red  spider.  Moisten  the  roots  thoroughly,  which  is  another  aid 
in  subduing  insects  and  ensuring  general  good  health.  The 
fruit  may  be  kept  late  if  so  desired  by  netting  up  a  whole  or 
portion  of  a  tree. 
PEACHES  AND  NECTARINES. — The  syringing,  which  is 
practised  frequently  with  a  view  to  maintaining  the  trees  clean, 
cannot  be  continued  after  the  fruits  commence  to  colour.  At 
this  stage,  if  not  carried  out  before,  lay  down  a  liberal  mulching 
over  the  roots  in  order  to  retain  the  moisture  in  the  soil  as  long  as 
possible.  To  expose  the  fruit  fully  to  the  influences  of  light  and 
air,  all  the  growths  it  is  necessary  to  retain  should  be  carefully 
laid  in  position  and  the  superfluous  shoots  removed.  Even  then 
the  fruit  may  be  shaded  by  large  leaves,  which  ought  to  be  drawn 
cn  one  side,  slightly  tying  them.  In  some  cases  the  leaves  may 
be  partly  shortened,  but  this  is  not  advisable  to  a  great  extent. 
PLUMS  AND  DESSERT  CHERRIES.— The  methods  adopted 
in  laying  in  and  regulating  the  growths  are  practically  the  same. 
Trees  allowed  to  make  plenty  of  free  growth,  which  it  is  not 
intended  to  shorten  back,  ought  to  have  early  attention  in  train¬ 
ing  it  in,  not  only  for  the  neat  and  cultivated  appearance  it  gives 
the  trees,  but  so  that  the  shoots  not  required  can  be  dispensed 
with,  thus  allowing  a  free_  circulation  of  air  and  light  among  the 
growths,  indispensable  aid's  to  the  ripening  of  the  fruit  and  the 
perfecting  of  the  wood.  Neglect  in  training,  and  the  consequent 
crowding  of  the  wood,  results  in  weakened  growth,  attacks  of 
insects,  and  a  check  to  the  free  swelling  of  the  fruit.  Both 
Plums  and  Cherries  are  very  subject  to  the  attacks  of  fly,  and 
when  trees  or  walls  are  so  infested  before  laying  in  the  shoots 
make  an  attempt  to  give  them  a  general  cleansing  with  a  garden 
engine,  followed  by  an  application  of  insecticide,  except  where 
the  fruit  may  be  ripe  or  ripening.  Dipping  the  shoots  in  a  vessel 
containing  some  effective  solution  may  be  used  where  the  tips  of 
the  shoots  are  much  infested.  A  thorough  syringing  must  be 
given  as  soon  as  the  trees  are  cleared  of  fruit.  The  majority  of 
Plums,  however,  being. still  green  and  swelling,  both  water  and 
insecticides  may  be  used.  Give  special  attention  to  the  roots, 
seeing  that  they  have  an  adequate  supply  of  moisture  at  this 
period,  for  the  demands  of  food  and  moisture  are  at  their 
maximum,  and  if  not  sufficiently  met  are  the  great  cause  of  throw¬ 
ing  trees  into  ill-health,  inviting  disease  and  insect  attacks. 
Applying  a  mulching  over  the  roots  will  prevent  the  hot  sunshine 
drying  up  the  surface,  and  it  is  also  useful  for  distributing  the 
water  and  liquid  manure  supplied,  and  maintaining  the  roots  cool. 
Wall  Plum  trees  bearing  an  exceptionally  heavy  crop  may 
advantageously  have  the  fruits  thinned,  removing  all  the  smallest 
and  ill-formed  fruits,  also  reducing  the  number  of  bunches.  The 
branches  of  either  Plums  or  Cherries  on  which  summer  shortening 
is  practised  must  have  the  shoots  pruned  to  fuur  or  five  leaves. 
APPLES  AND  PEARS. — In  whatever  form  trees  on  walls  are 
grown-it  is  necessary  to  check  the  further  growth  of  the  summer 
side  shoots  by  shortening  them  to'  four  or  five  leaves.  Second 
growth  of  a  vigorous  character  often  results  from  this,  but  it  is 
less  likely  to  do  so  now  than  when  carried  out  earlier.  Where 
there  is  an  exceptionally  good  crop  some  thinning  of  the  fruits 
must' be  carried  out  or  there  will  be  much  small  fruit  of  inferior 
quality.  It  will  be  best  to  go  over  the  trees  several  times,  but 
to  the  early  varieties  which  will  mature  next  month  the  final 
thinning  may  be  given.  Liquid  and  artificial  manure  may  be 
given  with  advantage  to  swelling  fruit. 
STRAWBERRIES. — All  runners  which  are  well  rooted  in 
small  pots  should  have  the  runner  wire  cut  and  the  pots  removed 
